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T. v. SMITH.- BOXI'OR STORING AND PRESERVIRG CIGARS AND TOBACCO.

Patente 1 A'prL25, 1893}.

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INVENTYOR v ATTORNEYS. v

THE norms Ptrzas cu, Puma-Lima. WASHINGTON. c, c

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

THEODORE V. SMITH, OF NFW YORK, N. Y.

BOX FOR STORING AND PRESERVING CIGARS A ND TOBACCO.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 496,234, dated April25, 1893. Application filed May 25, 1892. Serial No. 434,267. (Nomodel.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be itknown that I, THEODORE V. SMITH, of New York city, in the countyand State of New York, have invented a new and useful 5 Improvement inBoxes for Storing and Preserving Oigars and Tobacco, of which thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description. My invention relatesto an improvement in boxes adapted for use in the storage and Ipreservation of cigars and tobacco, being especially adapted to containcigars; and it is the object of the invention to provide a box which iscapable of being rendered absolutely air-tight, and which may alsocontain pads r for the purpose of maintaining the tobacco at a certaindegree of moisture, and whereby the pads may be dispensed with if notfound desirable.

It is another object of theinvention to construct the box in a simple,durable and economic manner, and also in such manner that each and everypart of it that it may be found necessary or desirable to remove, may betaken out, cleaned when needed,or duplicated when damaged.

The'invention consists in the novel construction and combination of theseveral parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth and pointed out inthe claim.

drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which similarfigures and letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all theviews.

Figure 1 is a plan view of the body of the box, the lid being open andin horizontal section; and Fig. 2 is a transverse section takenpractically on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, the lid of the box being shownclosed.

The device consists primarily in the body A and the top or cover B, thelatter having a hinged connection with the former. Both the body and thetop may be constructed of any approved material, usually a hard wood is45 used, or a wood capable of receiving and maintaining a high polish.The body A of the box is preferably made rectangular in general contour,and at the top, adjacent to to its inner side, a marginal, verticallylocated rib 10, is produced, as shown best in Reference is to be had tothe accompanying- Fig. 2, and the said body is provided with a lining11, of a water-proof or a moisture-proof material; the lining isremovable from thebox body, being made to conform to theinterior shapeof thelat-ter practicallyin every detail. A pad 12 of an absorbentmaterial is removably placed upon the bottom of the lining 11, and thepad is preferably made of a size to cover the entire bottom of thelining. Thepad in its turn is covered bya perforated or reticulatedplate 13, of equal size with the pad, the plate being also removablewhen desired. The pad is adapted to be wet with water or any otherdesired compound found advantageous in the treatment of tobacco.

The lid or cover B, as has heretofore been stated, is hinged to thebody, and the said lid or cover is adapted to fit snugly down upon thetop of the body from its outside to its marginal rib 10, as shown inFig. 2.

Along the inner faces of the end and side walls of the top or cover, apacking or cushion 14, is located, made of felt, rubber, or otherequivalent material; and a pad 15, of absorbent material, is placed inengagement with the inner face of the top portion of the cover, While aperforated or reticulated plate 16, is made to cover the pad. Thepacking or cushion, and likewise the pad 15 and its cover plate 16, areheld firmly in position in the lid or cover by angled plates 17, thesaid plates extending along the sides and ends of the cover, one memberin engagement'with the packing or cushion 14, and the other memherhaving engagement with the cover plate 16 of the upper pad,as is shownin both Figs. 1 and 2; these angle plates are held in this position bypassing nails, screws, or other fastening devices, through them andthrough the packing or cushion into the cover or itself.

It will thus be observed that the box is constructed with a removablelining, which should any accident happen to it may be readily taken outand replaced; furthermore, the box is provided with both an upper andlower 95 protected absorbent pad, so that when desired moisture may bemade to permeate the entire number of cigars in the box as it willdescend from the top and arise from the bottom; but if in practice it isfound that so much moist- 100 ure is not required, as the two pads wouldbe necessary only in dry climates, the lower pad and likewise itsprotecting plate may be removed and only the upper one retained. It isalso obvious that as the cushions 14, when the lid or coveris closed,bind firmly against the upper edges of the body ribs 10, a completelyair-tight connection is made; and in the event that the absorbent padshould become useless from wear, or the cushion should be rendered byany means imperfect, both may be removed by removing the plate 16, andthat the cost of construction of the box is reduced to a minimum, whileall of the advantages sought to be attained by the use of such a box arepreserved. The body of the box is preferably provided with a look, asillustrated in the drawings.

A box of the character above described may be used to great advantageupon ship board, or at the sea-side, or in moist climates, as the cigarsmay be kept as moist or as dry as may be desired. If they are to bepreserved entirely dry the pads are not moistened, and outside moisturecan not enter the box owing to the air tight connection between the lidand the body. But any amount of moisture may be imparted to the cigarsby using the upper pad, or both the upper and the lower ones.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent- In a box for the preservation and storage of tobaccoand cigars, the combination, with the body portion provided with aremovable lining of a water and moisture-proof material, an absorbentpad located upon the bottom of the lining, a protecting plate coveringthe pad and reticulated or perforated, the plate and pad beingremovable, and a marginal rib formed upon the upper surface of the body,of a cover, an absorbent pad and perforated or reticulated plate locatedWithin the inner upper portion of the cover, a cushion surrounding thesides and ends of the cover and adapted to engage firmly with themarginal rib of the body, and angle plates maintaining both the cushionand the pad and its protecting plate firmly in place and in engagementwith the cover, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

THEODORE V. SMITH.

\Vitncsses:

CHARLES S. PARKER, G. SEDGWICK.

